Ailing
by Dr. Fluffmuffin
Summary: The team is sick, and Kai is the only one healthy enough to care for them.
1. Chapter 1

**I own nothing but the story.**

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The sound of vomit splattering into the toilet bowl made Kai cringe for perhaps the millionth time that day. If eyebrows could have six-packs, his would have a twelve pack by now.

"Again?" he called.

His response came in the form of a broken groan and more bespattering. Kai sighed. And he had just cleaned that toilet.

"Alright," he shuffled over to the bathroom door and put a hand on the green ninja's back. It was damp with sweat.

"Let's get you to bed," he said, offering what he hoped was a reassuring squeeze.

Lloyd groaned and hugged the toilet bowl tighter, even going as far as to rest his head on the actual seat, a gross decision that struck fear in the heart of his teammate. Who in their right mind would ever place their cheek in the same spot where far less pleasant cheeks had also rested? Swallowing the urge to gag, Kai gave his friend's shoulder a slight pull.

"Come on, Lloyd, I know you're sick, but you'll feel better once you lie in bed and take a nap."

This time, the groan turned into a single coherent word: "Nnnooo..."

"Yyeess," Kai reached over and flushed the toilet, taking care to avoid the mess that lay within it, "Sleep helps the sick. I should know, I was sick once."

"Oh really?" said Lloyd, managing to muster some weak sarcasm, "You, sick? Impossible."

"I know, now come on," Kai pulled at his friend's shoulders. When Lloyd didn't budge, he gave up all pretenses and scooped him up with a massive grunt.

Lloyd protested, but didn't fight back as Kai shuffled him over to the center bed and dropped him. He was going to kill whoever brought the sickness onto the Bounty. In less than three days, it had infected everyone on the team, everyone except Kai, who was now forced to singlehandedly take care of all the unwell patients.

 _If only we'd found out who was sick sooner,_ thought Kai as he dragged Lloyd's feet onto the foot of the bed, _then we could have isolated them._

He was fairly certain it was Jay who got sick first, since he was the first to show the symptoms. But Cole had also been complaining of a headache the night before, and hadn't Sensei Wu gone to bed early with a sweaty brow and runny nose? Kai shook his head and moved to tuck Lloyd into the bed.

"What're you doin'?" Lloyd said, suddenly alert and anxious.

"Uh..." Kai froze, "Tucking you in?"

Lloyd pulled the blankets away, "I can do that myself, thanks."

"Oh," Kai took a step back, "Uh..okay." He was new to the whole "caring for the sick" thing, and always thought that all caring guardians were supposed to tuck the sick into bed. It felt like an unwritten law of sorts.

Not that it mattered. Lloyd had already pulled the blankets up so that only the top of his face peeked out from underneath it. He looked to Kai, who stood halfway between the bed and the door, unsure of what to do.

"Thanks for bringing me to bed," said Lloyd, his voice muffled, "you can leave now."

Kai took a half step back, "Uh, you sure?" When he was little and sick, his mother always stayed until he had fallen asleep. Was he supposed to do that with Lloyd? That would be awkward, but he didn't want to just leave him.

"Yeah," said Lloyd, "If I throw up remember that you were the one who dragged me away from the toilet."

"I didn't drag you!" Kai took a full step back, finding the notion of leaving to be easier now, "and if you throw up on those sheets, I'm gonna rearrange your teeth!"

Seriously, he'd just washed them.

But Lloyd laughed, "You don't stand a chance against the green ninja."

Any retort Kai had melted in his throat when Lloyd's laugh turned into a large, hacking cough. He rushed back to his friend's side, struggling to find something for his hands to do.

"Uh..." Kai rested his hand on the lump that contained Lloyd's arm, "There, there," he said, "Pat, pat."

The coughing subsided.

"Okay," said Kai, "I'm going to leave now. You sleep. And don't...do...anything."

Lloyd cleared his throat, "Okay."

Kai turned to go, and had made it halfway out the door when Lloyd's feeble voice called him back.

"Can you get me a glass of water?"

Suppressing the urge to groan at the thought of more dirty dishes, Kai moved to the kitchen and filled a large plastic cup. Before he left, he paused, grabbed a bendy straw—the kind Lloyd liked—and returned to the bedroom. By the time he reached it, however, Lloyd was already out cold. Shaking his head, he placed the cup onto the bedside table and, with only a moment's hesitation, brushed the bangs off of his friend's forehead. Then he left, making sure to shut the door behind him. He and Lloyd had been moved their own separate bedroom after the other three ninja had gotten sick, in an effort to keep it from spreading, but the same night Kai had awoken to his friend spewing bile all over the place. That left Lloyd with his own room and Kai with a spot on the living room couch.

While he was angry he had no comfortable place to sleep, he was thankful Lloyd at least had gotten his own room to wallow in. The other three were stuck making each other miserable.

Kai sighed as he began to head down to their bedroom, which had since then turned into something of a war zone. He still had to take care of the rest of the team, as well as Sensei and Nya. In the past he hadn't even been able to take care of a plant, let alone some sick and needy humans.

 _Oh well,_ he thought as he opened their bedroom door, _One down, five to go._

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 **Thank you so much for reading. I look forward to posting the rest of this story on here, for it was fun to write. Anyway, wherever you are, have a nice day, and take care of yourself this week.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I own nothing but the story.**

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Whatever Kai had been expecting when he walked into the bedroom, it hadn't been tears.

Every boy's bed lay empty and dirty except for Jay's, who now lay alone and was sobbing quietly to himself. Kai's first instinct was to run; he wasn't the best at emotions that dealt with anything other than anger. However, his friend needed him, and gosh-darn it he was going to help him. He just needed to think of the right words to say, reassuring words that would quell the tears and ease the sick pain.

"Anything wrong, Jay?"

And he failed.

Jay looked up from behind his hands. His eyes were puffy and red, as well as the rest of his face. Kai tried to smile, but all he did was twitch. He made a quick sweeping gesture instead.

"I see the others left."

Jay nodded, an unhappy sound following.

"You know why?" Kai ventured, "Or where they are?"

Jay took a breath and let out a wail, forcing Kai to take an involuntary step backwards.

"It's because of me!" he began to cry harder.

"Huh?"

Jay's voice was so plugged up he was an octave deeper than normal, "They say I snore too loud."

"Oh," Kai looked away. Was Jay the one he heard three walls and a room away the previous evening?

"Do you..." he said, "You want me to go get them?"

Jay shook his head and waved a slimy hand, "No, I don't care about them, I'm crying because I'm snoring so loud I wake myself up! And I haven't been able to fall asleep since this last time!" he sobbed even harder, his voice cracking with every breath.

Kai pursed his lips to keep from smiling. Well, he couldn't fault the others for leaving. "Is there anything you want me to do?"

"Please!" Jay looked up at him with the intensity of a dying man, "Please help me fall asleep! I'm so tired, and my entire head hurts!"

"Um, okay," Kai sat down on one of the opposite beds, "Should I heat up some milk?"

Jay shook his head, "That makes me pee faster than normal."

"Okay," a laugh nearly escaped Kai's lips, but he caught it, "Do you want me to...help you...meditate?"

Again, Jay shook his head, "That makes me all philosophical, and I can't sleep when I'm philosophical."

"Uh..." Kai didn't even think his friend could _get_ philosophical about anything other than the comics he read, "Well, what do you normally do to sleep?"

"I just pretend to sleep until I actually sleep."

"Have you tried that?"

"Of course I have, you shriveled walnut!"

One of his fists clenched. Kai moved it so his pants covered his knuckles. "Was there anything else?"

Jay's left eye twitched and dribbled little teardrops as he thought, "Mom used to sing me lullabies."

Something inside of Kai twisted and shrank backwards. "Oh?"

Jay looked at him.

"...no."

"Please?"

"No!"

"Kai, I'm so sleepy!" Jay began to cry some more.

"Argh," Kai raked a hand through his hair, reducing it once more to a tangled mess, "Alright, just stop crying."

Jay inhaled and held his breath until he calmed down.

"Okay," Kai stood, moved his hands to his hips, took them away, put them back again, "Okay."

Jay looked at him expectantly.

"Okay."

"That's not a lullaby, Kai."

"I know! Just—" Kai did a quarter turn and faced the window, "I need a moment to find a song..."

"You familiar with _The Crimson Door_?"

"No, but that sounds horrifying."

Jay sighed, bits of phlegm clearing as he did so, "Then forget it then, that's the only one that really gets me."

 _Well alrighty then,_ thought Kai. They were back to square one. Or, at least, they were for a moment. An idea struck Kai, one that made him smirk.

"What?" Jay's brow ruffled.

Saying nothing, Kai sifted through the sheets of his own bed, brushing aside tissue boxes and various items of clothing. Gosh, it smelled. A moment later, his hand found the prize he'd all but forgotten about in the past few days. Emerging with his phone, he opened it up and searched the Internet for a certain video.

When he found what he was looking for, he handed his phone over to his friend. Jay took it with just an echo of his normal zeal. He shrieked.

"Math videos!?"

"Yup," Kai felt his chest swell, "Now you can learn a little about derivatives until you fall asleep!"

A fractured groan left the bed. Kai laughed.

"C'mon, Jay, nothing makes you fall asleep faster than calculus!"

"But—" Jay paused to sniff, "but that doesn't mean I have to like it!"

"Well, that's the only thing that's going to work though, isn't it?"

Jay grumbled something that sounded like a "Probably."

Kai nodded, and soon left his friend to the video. He thought that it would be a good thirty minutes into the three hour video before Jay finally fell asleep, but five minutes later Jay was out. When Kai checked up on him, all was quiet. Smiling to himself, he grabbed his phone and shut it off. He was about to leave when an atrocious sound made him freeze.

It sounded like someone was taking a dog toy, squeezing it, and letting it go. The only difference was that it was at the volume of an unskilled trumpet player trying to blast notes above the staff. Kai was downright appalled. Even in his sleep, Jay was horribly, obnoxiously loud. No wonder the others had left.

But the noise didn't last long. A minute or so after the sound began, Jay awoke, looking around in confusion before scrunching up his face and letting out a cry.

 _No, no, no no no no_ "—no no no no no!" Kai pulled out his phone again, "Don't cry, we can get you to sleep—we just have to—"

"It's no use!" Jay blubbered, "I'll never sleep again!"

"Yes you can!" Kai moved to Jay's side, "We just have to roll you over. It works, trust me. Nya used to do it to me all the time."

"Will—" Jay sniffed, "will it be enough? Surely you heard me, I'm so loud."

"I know, but uh..." Kai's eyes found a half used box of tissues lying on its side under their small nightstand. He grabbed it and held it up, "You can breathe with just your mouth, right?"

Five minutes later, Jay lay on his side, phone in hand, and tissues hanging like feathers out of each nostril. He eyed the math video with a rather perplexed look on his face. He looked up and spoke in a much more satiated voice, "Are you sure this is going to work?"

Kai nodded, "I'm positive."

He really had to be, if he ever wanted to accomplish anything. This time it took about twenty minutes for Jay to finally succumb to sleep; it seemed he had gotten into the video, and it was only by sheer exhaustion that he couldn't watch any more. Before Kai left, he waited for the horrifying noise that he was now certain he heard the previous night.

He waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Nothing.

Kai grinned. He went to his friend to check if he was breathing steady. Save for the ghastly stench emanating from Jay's mouth, all was well. Placing his phone on the table so that Jay would have something to watch later, Kai crossed his friend's name off of his mental list and left him in peace.

 _Four to go._

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 **Thank you for reading, friends.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I own nothing but the story.**

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"So tell me..."

Zane looked up from inside a pile of blankets.

Kai placed his hands on his hips, "How do you, a robot, get sick?"

Zane blinked and smiled, getting the look on his face where he seemed to look past you instead of at you. He was about to go into a speech.

"You see Kai," he said, his voice sounding scratched and tinny, "Part of the reason I believed I was human for so long was because parts of me _are_ human," he pulled himself up from his resting position on the couch, "As you probably know, I am able to do much of the same things that you do, such as digest food, excrete waste and other substances, and even grow hair. This is because, while my father had the genius to create a machine that can emulate the functions of the human body, he simply could not replicate everything, not in a way that would produce a functioning human. This is why, when he created me, he found a way to strip his own cells back to a steady supply of stem cells, and allow them to work _with_ the machinery, eventually using them to create what I needed to live. This is how I can operate."

He smiled and held out two blanket enclosed hands, "That's what makes me, me! However, it seems these human parts have gotten infected with this virus. I cannot say I care for it."

Kai let out a hum of a response. When he asked the question, he hadn't expected to receive an actual answer.

"I am preparing a scan that should locate virus," said Zane, "When I find it, it will be terminated, and I can walk as a healthy man again. Then I can help you care for the others!" he smiled wide, like there was nothing he would rather do then help Kai wash dirty sheets and clean up puddles of vomit and other bodily substances.

"Thanks," he muttered, looking at the floor, "Ever consider being a teacher?"

"Nope," Zane looked back towards the television set, which was tuned in to a documentary about the history of the Serpentine.

Kai sat next to him, studying the show to see if it was worth watching. When his interest failed to peak, he turned to Zane, who was wrapped up in so many blankets he quite literally embodied the term, "human burrito."

"So how exactly are you feeling?"

Zane shrugged, "Alright, I suppose. My machinery is not working at the level I am used to, and I seem to be overcome with this symptom of sluggishness, or laziness, perhaps. That's why I'm watching television; I am too tired to go and get my books."

Kai nodded. Zane certainly looked better than his other teammates. Only the lighter hue of his 'skin' and the constant twitch of his right eyelid gave away the fact that he wasn't working at normal capacity.

"When do you think you'll be better?"

Zane shrugged, "As soon as the test is completed and the sickness taken care of. At the speed my circuits are moving right now, that could be as soon as this evening or sometime late tomorrow."

"Okay," Kai sighed and flopped backwards, "you want me to go get your books for you?"

Zane laughed, "No thank you. You ought to hear Jay's snores, they are abhorrent."

Kai chuckled, "Just fixed that. Somehow."

"Oh good!" said Zane, "Now we might actually sleep tonight!"

A smile snaked its way across Kai's face. That would all depend on how quietly everyone else slept. He wasn't sure Cole slept so soundly himself. Speaking of which...

"Do you know where Cole is? I need to check on him."

The blankets cockled over each other as Zane looked around. "Don't know," he said, "I'm sure he is around here, somewhere," he paused, "He did mention something about baking the two of us cake."

That shouldn't have scared Kai, but it did. Sick people could do strange things, since their bodies were working on overdrive. He needed to find Cole.

 _But wait..._ the little voice in his head called to him as he made to stand, _You can't just leave Zane here..._

He looked to his teammate, "Is there anything you need before I go? I hate to leave you like this."

Zane waved a hand, "I'm perfect, Kai, no need to worry about me. Although—" he looked up to his friend's face, "Could you possibly bring me some more blankets? The switch that regulates my body temperature is malfunctioning."

Kai couldn't help but laugh, " _You're_ cold?"

The ninja had spent nearly half an hour and possibly longer underneath the icy surface of a lake in the darkest part of winter, and he was cold? It was impossible, and bizarrely hilarious. Zane seemed to think so, as well.

"It is ironic, yes?" he shook his head, "But I cannot change it. Would you please bring me some more blankets?"

"Sure, I suppose," said Kai, "but you've probably got every one in the entire ship." _Including the ones I was using for sleep_ , he added silently.

"Hold on," he said.

He returned to the bedroom, taking care not to disturb Jay, and pulled the blankets off of Zane's bed, and after a moment, off of his own. His were sort of clean. At least, clean enough to wrap around his buddy. He just hoped Zane wasn't able to smell.

"There you go!" he cheered when he got back to his comrade. He wrapped the blankets around the other's shoulders and tucked them close.

"Thank you, Kai," Zane smiled at him, "You're doing a good job."

"Thanks," Kai sighed and took a step back. Boy, was he getting tired. He needed to get on with this whole, "caring" thing. How many more did he have to go?

"I believe Cole is in the kitchen," said Zane, "That's where he'd make the cake, but it has been awfully quiet in there."

Another shiver of fear slid up Kai's spine, "Well, I better go check on him. I'd hate to have any accidents. Is there anything else you need?"

"No thank you, I am well."

"Good," Kai made to exit, then turned back to offer one last dollop of advice, "You know, I find it helps to load up on trashy movies when you're sick."

Zane laughed and grinned at him, "Do not worry," he said, "I am not sick enough for that."

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 **Thank you for reading; may you have a wonderful, stress free day.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I own nothing but the story.**

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Zane said that Cole was in the kitchen, baking a cake. Kai went into the kitchen, but all he found was a mess large enough to make him feel faint. So he went and checked the closet. And the bathroom. And the bedroom. But Cole wasn't anywhere. So he checked again. And again. And again. Finally, he went out onto the Bounty's deck, his heart in the back of his throat. He began to wonder, was this what true panic was?

He was about to find out, for as soon as he stepped onto the wind washed deck, he spotted Cole hobbling across the railing, his arms out to keep him balanced and teetering from foot to foot as the wind attempted to rock him from his perch.

His heart dropped straight out of him, plunging through the Bounty's deck and sailing towards the distant earth below.

"Cole!" he squeaked. He cleared his throat and spoke louder, "Cole!"

His friend turned to him and held his arm up in an amiable wave. This turned out to be detrimental for him, because a gust of wind rose just as he moved, and he nearly lost his balance. Kai could have sworn his heart stopped beating as he watched Cole wobble back and forth until he was steady again. He thought Cole would have gotten off then, but he continued to walk across the thin wooden railing as if nothing had happened.

Questions soaring through his head, Kai stamped over to his teammate, feeling a mixture of anger and fear. How could his friend be so reckless? And when he was sick, no less?

"Cole, get your pathetic behind down here this instant, or I'm going to—"

"Going to what?" Cole's voice was thick with phlegm, "Push me off?"

The thought crossed his mind, but that was counter productive, "What are you doing up there?"

"Trying to see if I can go all the way around without falling off."

 _Dear God..._ "Noooo! Don't try and do that!" Was this what it felt like to have a heart attack? "What happened to making cake? Why don't you go and do that?"

"I did!" said Cole, "It's in the oven right now."

"Well then let's make another one," said Kai, unable to believe he was encouraging _Cole_ to cook, "Just—come down from there!"

He wanted to grab Cole's leg to keep him from moving any further away, but he feared a possible struggle that would lead to a gravity-induced death.

"I don't think it's a good idea to cook anymore," said Cole, so quietly Kai thought he was speaking to himself, "I kept sneezing all over the cake. I don't know what I'm going to tell Zane."

What, was Cole afraid? "He'll understand," he tried, "He's Zane! I don't think he's up to eating, anyway."

Cole continued walking, lost in his own world. Kai tried a different tactic.

"I'll give you a buck if you come down."

"No."

He didn't have a buck anyway, "I'll squeeze you some orange juice."

Cole looked at him from beneath his bangs. Kai could see sickness induced tears leaking from his eyelids as the cold air turned his sockets from white to a bloodshot red.

"Really?" Cole questioned.

Kai shrugged and said, "Yeah. I'll give you pulp and everything!"

"No thanks," Cole looked away and took another step, much to Kai's anger and dismay, "I used the last of the oranges making the cake."

Kai threw his palms out, "What cake uses _oranges?"_

"Uh, fruitcake?" Cole scoffed at him, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

And it kind of was, but at the same time, "Fruitcake isn't even a real cake!"

That was the wrong thing to say. Or...was it the right thing? Cole leapt down from the railing, but he was fuming, and were his ears red from the sickness of anger? Kai wasn't sure he liked the look Cole had in his eyes.

"Fruitcake— _is a cake,"_ he said, his shoulders stiff and tense, "No better or worse than any other cake."

"Alright, okay!" Kai said, slipping his fingers into the matching sign, "Easy, big guy. I was just kidding!"

"Besides," Cole said, relaxing a little, "it's Zane's favorite cake."

"Oh," said Kai, "I see."

His heart slowed as Cole relaxed, making no move to go back on the rail. Now he could finally do what he came to do.

"How are you feeling?" he tried to move his hand to Cole's forehead, but his friend drew back.

"I feel like I should just lay down and die," Cole said, attempting to push stray black hairs behind his ear, "but other than that, I'm great, thanks." He began to fiddle with the plaited collar of his pajama shirt, because _of course_ Cole was out on a freezing day tempting fate in his pajamas. Kai sighed. Why was he friends with such idiots?

"Well, why don't you come inside and rest? Take a nap with Jay, watch some TV with Zane, just don't stay out here, okay?" he tried to grab Cole's arm.

"Zane keeps watching these weird documentaries," Cole said, taking another step back, "I wouldn't mind, but we just watched one that went on and on about how Garmadon's mother was a victim of alien abduction, and he's actually the result of an alien-human hybrid experiment."

Kai looked up, full of questions.

Cole nodded, "That's why he's got the four arms. 'Cause he's not human," Cole shook his head, "Weird stuff. Dunno how much more I can stand it."

And Zane said he didn't watch trashy TV. "Well, I'm sure you could compromise. Or, why don't you go take a nap with Jay; he could probably use some company."

Cole's lips drew into a thin line, "But I'm not tired."

Kai shook his head. He could see the dark circles under Cole's eyes. Had he himself sounded like that when he was younger? He couldn't remember.

"Why don't we try it?" Kai took Cole's arm, and was pleased when it wasn't immediately snatched away, "Jay's all quiet now, and I think you're more tired than you realize."

He led Cole inside. Zane offered a wave from the couch, which they both returned, and they entered the room. Kai pointed to the bed.

"Now sleep," he whisper-yelled.

Cole made a face, but dropped onto the bed. Jay didn't stir, didn't even twitch. Kai was gladdened to see the tissues were holding up well, and that Jay wasn't bothered by them.

Cole lay on the bed for a solid minute, staring at the upper bunk, before giving Kai a thumbs up. He took it as a cue to leave, and did so gladly. The room reeked.

He was about to creep his way into another room of an invalid, but then remembered the fruitcake burning away in the oven. Figuring Cole would like to eat it later, he went back to the oven and wrinkled his nose at the kitchen's state. Shaking his head, he opened the appliance and groaned. Cole hadn't even turned it on. Lying on the grate was a platter full of watery batter that had chunks of citrus floating in it. Disgusting.

After dumping the contents down the drain, Kai laid the platter to rest and began to head towards the next person on his mental checklist. On his way, he passed their bedroom. In it, he saw Cole delicately doodling on Jay's sleeping face. Smirking, Kai let them be and opened the door to his next patient. He was getting pretty good at this.


	5. Chapter 5

**I own nothing but the story.**

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Taking care of his sister was nothing new. He'd done it for the better half of his short time being alive, and this time wasn't any different. In fact, given the way everything else had gone today, he was looking forward to spending some time with his sister. It was nice and familiar, even if it did put his protective brother senses on overdrive.

The first thing she did when he stepped into the room was scrutinize him with a half lidded stare and drawl, "You look awful."

Kai grinned. "Can't say you look too good yourself."

"Hey," Nya pushed herself up into a sitting position on the bed, "I can't help how I look. You, on the other hand..."

"Too busy," said Kai, moving to the end of her bed and sitting on it, "Can't spend as much time in the bathroom when we have a spastic vomiter in constant need of it."

"Lloyd's still throwing up?"

He nodded, "Yeah. Though I think he's on the downhill, now. He only throws up when he's awake."

Nya smirked, "So you put him to sleep?"

"Maybe," Kai rubbed at the back of his head, "I've been washing sheets since yesterday morning."

"Aw," Nya nudged her foot against his thigh, "Poor little Kai. At least now you know how Mom felt when we brought home that stomach virus, huh?"

"Oh gosh!" Kai laughed and flopped backwards, "You remember how she threw up all over Dad right after she put us to bed?"

"Never felt more guilty in my life!" Nya's chuckle turned into a cough.

Kai sat up, his senses on alert. "Need anything? Food? Water? Tissues?"

"How about some medicine?" Nya said, wiping away some spit, "I feel like I've been hit by the Samurai suit."

Kai got up and headed out the door. Before he left, he managed to squeeze in one last comment, "So you don't hurt too bad, right?"

A pillow stolen from Jay's bed came sailing towards him at the speed of light. Kai got out and slid the door halfway shut, knocking the pillow harmlessly away. As he ran down the hallway, he laughed.

He found a bottle of pills in the cupboard above the washing machine, as well as several other mysterious medicines that somehow always found their way there, despite how no one ever claimed ownership to them. He was still wondering who had made the unfortunate purchase of laxatives, and who'd been using them since they'd arrived.

He brought the bottle of pills and a glass of apple juice back with him. After returning the thrown pillow to the bed, he watched his sister swallow the pills with his mouth in a twist. If there was any lesson he kept learning over and over again, it was that being sick was _not_ fun. At least the worst of it had been contained to yesterday. He didn't think he had showered since three days ago.

He lifted his arm and gave a quick check. He coughed. Maybe four days.

"Anything else I can do for you?" Kai asked, placing his arm to his side so that his pits were clamped firmly shut.

Nya shrugged, "I think I'm good here. I've got everything I need. I only wish there was a bathroom in here so I wouldn't have to get up."

Kai let out a little laugh, "Well, I know Sensei's got a bedpan somewhere on this ship, so if you really want to..."

Nya held up her hands, "I think I'm good, thanks. Now go take a nap, you look terrible."

"Huh," Kai scoffed, "Naw, I still got one more person to check up on before I do anything."

Although he was feeling pretty tired, now. And was that a headache teasing at the back of his skull?

"When you're done," said Nya, "Go to sleep. You've done enough today," she smiled, "Mom would certainly be proud."

"Aw thanks, Nya," Kai felt a smile coming on.

"I mean—" Nya wasn't done yet, "You've probably done more work in the past few days than over the course of your whole life!"

Kai held up his pointer finger, "Not true!" he insisted. He hadn't meant to laugh when he said it, but he was, and the smile stayed on his face as he shut the door to his sister's room and headed down to Sensei's.

 _One left._

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 **Who do _you_ think owns the laxatives?  
**

 **At the time of writing, I didn't know season 7 existed, and therefore didn't know that Kai and Nya's parents were still alive. For the sake of this story, they're dead.**


	6. Chapter 6

**I own nothing but the story.**

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Kai wasn't one who enjoyed admitting things. Whether it be something good or something bad, he preferred to keep it to, or sometimes from, himself. But tonight, as the sun left the sky and laid itself to sleep, Kai couldn't help but admit that he had no idea what he was supposed to do.

Sensei sat upright at his desk, wrapped in a blanket and donning bright blue rabbit slippers. He was hunched over, pen in hand, still working, even in this state. Kai felt a smile expand across his face.

Excluding everyone from the past three days, Kai had all of three patients in his life: his sister, and his parents. He cared for his mother after she got the stomach virus. He'd cared for his father upon his deathbed, so as far as caring for older people, he was sufficiently learnt.

However, Sensei was a different case altogether. He was old, but he was stable. In the face of death he could stand his ground, and not just that, he could smile and snark. He was self-sufficient, against the idea of letting others help him in endeavors he could do himself, and Kai had this feeling Sensei would be reluctant to have one of his students making sure he took care of himself.

But he supposed he could do nothing but his best. Kai just hoped that he would do well.

The door to Sensei's room was open, inviting, but Kai knocked anyway, rapping twice as he stepped into the room. Sensei looked up into a little mirror he kept above his main candle, spotting his student in the reflection. He smiled.

"Kai, good evening."

His voice was hoarse, grating. Kai made a mental checklist of possible items to retrieve should Sensei need any.

"Are you doing alright, Sensei?" he walked next to his teacher's desk, standing near the candle.

"Much better than yesterday," said Sensei, his tone pleasant despite the coarseness of his voice, "How are the others?"

"They're fine," said Kai. And they were. Everyone was slowly but surely getting better. "I haven't seen you much. Are you sure you're okay? Have you been eating?"

"I am, Kai," a little laugh graced Sensei's lips, "I've been sleeping, mostly. I find it's the best medicine. And the most fun, for me. I must say, having a bedpan in here makes things so much easier."

Kai's stomach twisted and he felt the need to twitch, "That's neat."

Sensei laughed, but as far as admitting that he was kidding, he remained silent. Kai unconsciously gave the air a brief whiff, but couldn't detect anything especially nasty. Although he found his nose was getting a little runny, and he couldn't smell well, anyway, so maybe the possible stench was masked.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" he asked, unsure of the answer he was going to receive.

Sensei paused in his writing to give Kai a look, "Yes, you can go to bed. You've done enough today."

"I'm not tired," Kai found himself echoing his friend's words earlier, "And I still need to help you out."

"But I don't need any help, Kai. I am perfectly fine."

"I know," Kai shook himself off, from what, he didn't know, "But I'd feel so much better if I could help you in some way. You shouldn't have to do everything all by yourself."

"That's sweet of you," said Sensei, scribbling away at his notes. Kai wondered what he was writing about. "Will you go to bed if I let you do something for me?"

Kai nodded. Anything to help Sensei.

"In that case, I'll admit I've been craving tea, as of late. Would you be kind, and make me a cup?"

"Absolutely!" Kai left the desk and headed towards the door, "What kind?"

"Chamomile!" Sensei called after him as he entered the hallway, "With lavender, if we have any."

 _Got it, I've got it_ , thought Kai. He went to the kitchen, passing Zane, who was now joined by another pile of blankets containing a sleepy looking Cole. He left them to their show, and tried not to make too much noise as he cleared away the stovetop.

 _Chamomile with lavender,_ he thought. Did they have either of those?

He opened up the cupboard, looking among the throngs of teabags. He found one last chamomile in a limp box in the back, but lavender seemed a lost cause. There wasn't a trace of it. Trying not to feel the sting of failure, he got Sensei's favorite blue teapot, filled it with water, and set it over the stove's flames to boil.

As far as cooking went, Kai's skills were about at the level of Cole's, in that he had no skills, but he felt that he could at least do tea. He just had to be careful to not mess up.

Now was he supposed to put the tea bag in the pot or the cup?

Kai sniffed. The cup. Most definitely the cup. He should probably make sure.

"Zane!" he called, softly, "Does the tea go in the kettle or the cup?"

Ever helpful, Zane turned and asked, "Is it in a little bag with string?"

"Yeah."

"Then cup. Just take it out later."

 _Thank you._ Kai went back into the kitchen feeling much more confident. There was no way he could mess up now. _Because if Zane says it's right_ , he reasoned, _It must be right_.

The water took a while to boil. Too long, it seemed. Kai was having trouble keeping his eyes open, and the longer he stayed awake, the more his head began to pound. He needed to drink some water; he needed to rest.

The teapot's lid rattled around its hem as hot air rose. The water was boiling, albeit much stronger than he'd meant it to. Kai lifted the lid to blow on it, but received a face full of steam. He shrank back with a hiss.

Placing the lid back on the teapot, he grabbed the handle and poured the burning liquid into a teacup, dropping in the teabag with a less than tame splash. He set the teapot back on the stove a lot harder than he meant to, accidentally spilling more water all over the counter, the stove, the floor. Boy, his head was really starting to hurt. He'd have to clean up the mess a little later, after he had a chance to sit down and rest. First he needed to finish making sure all his loved ones were taken care of. He couldn't rest knowing his friends were without their tea.

Not bothering to take the bag out of the cup, Kai grabbed it with a shaking hand and headed back to Sensei's room, passing his drowsy friends once more. He hoped they'd be gone by the time he got back.

"Here you are Sensei!" Kai called, his voice cracking. Funny, it had been fine all day. He walked to the desk and placed the cup next to Sensei's right hand.

Sensei hesitated as he stared at it. Kai's stomach seized, but Sensei picked up the cup, pulled out the bag, blew off the top, and took a dainty sip. Kai held a short breath. Did he do all right? The tea was hardly what one would call a good cup. The water was still burning, the leaves still intact, and the cup just plain hot. Kai's heart sank. He should have been more careful, should have got Zane to check it, should have—

"This is perfect, Kai. Just what I needed."

That didn't sound right. "Really?"

Sensei smiled, "Indeed. You've done well."

"It's not too hot?" said Kai, "I think I let it boil too long—"

"Please, Kai," Sensei waved a hand absently, "It couldn't be hot enough. I've been drinking cold tea for the past few days; this is so fulfilling."

He was just being nice, but Kai couldn't stop the warm sensation spreading through him.

"Now why don't you go to bed? You've done a good job," Sensei's eyes sparkled with what Kai could only describe as pride, "You'll make a great parent one day."

Kai nodded, choosing to ignore the last part. He wanted to just leave it at, "Good job." He did a good job. He bid Sensei farewell, and shut the door behind him as he exited.

His heart pounded in his ears, and he could feel his blood rushing. He tried shaking away the feeling, for he needed to stay strong and stable, but he just ended up getting dizzy. And now his nose was running, and his throat hurting. Maybe he'd feel better if he did just go to sleep tonight. Surely the rest of the chores could wait until tomorrow. Surely he would wake up feeling normal, as always.

He walked into the living room and stopped short. Zane lay asleep on the couch in his bundle of blankets, spread out so that his feet rested on Cole's lap. Cole himself had fallen asleep upright, his foot on the table and his head resting in the couch's crook.

Kai sighed. He wondered if that cot they'd pulled for Garmadon on his first visit was still lying around somewhere. His search for it felt long, and his eyes seemed to grow harder and harder to pull open with each blink. He ended up finding the cot in their hallway closet, next to the games and under a mop.

He set it up in the living room corner, and after a brief scan around the room, grabbed the floor rug to use as a blanket.

 _This is fine_ , thought he.

He supposed it was. _After all_ , he thought as his eyes closed shut, _Everyone's well. I did a good job._


	7. Chapter 7

**I own nothing but the story.**

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He woke up to the sound of voices, some soft, and others, namely one, rose above all the rest.

"It was not me who got sick, I was fine until you sneezed on me!"

"That was a regular sneeze, caused by dust!" said a slightly quieter, deeper voice.

"Oh please!"

Kai's eyes felt sticky as he opened them. Where was he? Who was speaking? Why was he so comfortable?

"Hey guys, he's awake!" said the loud voice.

Kai tilted his head to the side. Why did everything seem three times louder than they should be?

"Quiet down, Jay, he's sick!"

That was Nya. What was she doing out of bed? He groaned and turned over, aware that he had somehow ended up in his bunk.

"Hey Kai," said Nya, appearing next to him, "How you feeling?"

Well, his throat felt like it was stuffed with straw. How could he speak in such a state, even move his tongue? To make matters worse, his stomach felt as though it could erupt at any moment. It was when this thought crossed his mind that he became aware of the fact that he was on a ship, a flying one at that, and it was a really bad idea to fall sick on a ship. He let out another groan.

Nya laughed, "Yup, that's what I thought," she looked up, towards a faceless person out of his field of vision, "Could you get him some blankets?"

Cool hands that made him shiver as they brushed his neck tucked the seams of a quilt around his shoulders.

"Sorry for taking all of these last night," came the voice of Zane, "You could have grabbed them, I would not have minded."

"But—" it hurt to speak, _That would have inconvenienced you._

"Hey bud!" Jay spoke again, "We moved the TV in here so you could play some video games, when you're up to it."

"And I charged your phone!" called Lloyd from somewhere inside the bathroom. Not everyone seemed to be feeling better today.

"And here's some breakfast!" said Cole.

Kai heaved himself up into a sitting position, as Cole placed a tray of various breakfast foods on his lap. On the side of a plate full of burnt bacon and eggs was a bottle of painkillers and other medicine packets, as well as a mysterious jar of chili powder for whatever reason.

"Eat up!" said Cole, "You'll need the energy."

Kai sighed. He just used all of his energy to sit up; there was no way he could even pick up his spoon now, let alone lift it to his mouth.

"Looks like the crud finally got to you," said Nya, laughter sparkling in her eyes. Kai wished he could share it.

"But we're going to take care of you!" said Jay, his voice still scratchy, but otherwise okay, "Just like you did us, only better!"

"Whatever you need, we'll provide you," said Zane.

"But—" Kai croaked, "What about you guys?"

Cole let out a _'pshhhh,'_ sound, "We're fine. We had a great nurse."

"Now we'll return the favor to you," said Lloyd, wiping his mouth as he snuck up behind Zane.

"So is there anything else you need?" asked Nya.

Kai looked around. Along with the TV and extra blankets, Kai had a table full of various medicines, his phone sitting on its charger at 100%, and a glass filled nearly to the brim with orange juice. Kai smiled when he saw a striped, bendy straw poking out over the top of it like a flamingo.

"I'm good," he said, turning to Nya with a smile, "All I really need is a bedpan, but..."

Nya smiled, "We'll get Lloyd to help you to the bathroom."

The boy protested at the statement, but Nya breezed along, saying, "We're going to leave you alone to rest, now. Whatever you need, just call us, and we'll give it to you."

"Thanks," said Kai.

They all began to leave the room, and before Nya shut the bedroom door, she turned back and said, "Wu's going to stop by later and bring you some tea."

"What kind?"

"Chamomile. With lavender, he said."

She shut the door.

Kai smiled. He looked at his breakfast, gripping his spoon and lifting it to the cooling bowl of milky oatmeal. He managed to spoon a single bite into his mouth before dropping it with a groan. Eating required too much effort. The mere thought of moving his mouth up and down for a sustained amount of time was alone exhausting. He'd have to try again later.

 _Or,_ the voice in his head spoke again, _You could get the other ninja to spoon feed it to you and eat like a king._

The thought was so ridiculous Kai sputtered out a laugh. While he wasn't going to force his friends to suffer through that, he'd little doubt that if he asked, they would do it.

Instead he set the tray aside and turned over to sleep some more. Before he drifted off he had one last thought, _I have great friends._

He fell asleep with a smile on his face.

End.

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 **Thank you so much for reading this story. Your support meant the world to me, and I wish I could thank you individually. I hope you have a wonderful day!**


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